Handsewn
by tailor31415
Summary: The Pack is heading off to college, and Derek is going to be left behind. "So, I thought, well, Derek's Pack is leaving him so…I thought to give you a pack for while we're gone. I mean, you're going to miss the pack and all." Just a short fluffy Sterek thing.


Disclaimer: Teen Wolf and its characters/plot are in no way mine.

* * *

Derek was already looking tired. Like, worn-out and exhausted. Stiles frowned a little as he stepped out of the Jeep; he had imagined Derek looking like this after weeks of them not being here, because the whole pack was going away for college and Derek was going to be all alone again and Stiles just knew that would wear him down, wear him out, drive him crazy with loneliness until he was back to the moody creep he had been back when Stiles was sixteen. But, he wasn't supposed to look like that already.

"Hey!" Stiles called out, pasting on a huge grin as he waved wildly at Derek.

Derek gave one of those looks towards the sky that managed to convey 'Why do I have to deal with this?' with the minimum amount of eyebrow arching and eye rolling. Stiles considered not giving him the gift because, hey, Stiles was marvelous and Derek should be honored to have a chance to talk to him. But then he remembered the expression on Derek's face from before and it was overlapping with his dad's face when they hugged last night and yeah, he couldn't let that go on.

"Come here," Stiles said, flapping his hand towards the Jeep's hood.

Derek walked over slowly, looking almost wary as he eyed the bag Stiles was gripping by the handles. "You called me out," he stated, and Stiles wondered if there was supposed to be a question there.

"I did," he replied, deciding to be magnanimous instead of snarky today, "I have something for you." Derek finally reached the Jeep, now staring full out at the bag instead of looking at Stiles. "You know, since, well, we're all heading out this week and, uh, you're not."

Derek's eyes flashed up to his and he stared for a moment before saying, "So you brought me something." He glanced at the bag again. "It is a photo album or something?"

Stiles smirked and shook his head. "Come on, dude, this bag is way too big to hold a photo album."

"It could be a large photo album," Derek offered, eyes fixed on the bag again. Stiles bounced on the balls of his feet until Derek gritted out, "Are you going to show me?"

Stiles grinned and replied, "Of course!" Bag rustling as he lifted it, he placed it on top of the hood and opened it up. He spread out the gifts as he continued, "So, I thought, well, Derek's Pack is leaving him so…I thought to give you a pack for while we're gone. I mean, you're going to miss the pack and all." Out of the corner of his eye, he thought he saw Derek mouthing the words 'give you a pack,' but he ignored it. "So, this is Scott and Allison!" he declared as he pointed out two of the stuffed wolves, fashioned in a prone position, that had their front paws tied together. "Because they're inseparable."

Shifting to point at the next stuffed wolf – a white one in the pose of howling, nose delicately pointed towards the sky, Stiles carefully avoided looking at Derek's face – he was sure the expression of disbelief would be so exaggerated he wouldn't be able to resist laughing. "And this white one is Lydia, because, hello, it's Lydia." He glanced at Derek now, but the man actually was listening seriously, eyes fixed on the stuffed animals. "And, these three, they're Erica, Isaac, and Boyd. See, Erica's that golden-tan one; with her hair, can you imagine how gorgeous she'd be as an actual wolf? And, yeah, Boyd's the chocolate-brown-blackish one, because you can't pretend he wouldn't be. And, feel this one, go on, that's Isaac; his fur is like ten times softer than any of the others. Because he's fluffy and soft like that."

He glanced up eagerly at Derek when he finished, small smile on his face, and watched Derek's eyes roam over the collection several times. "Where's yours?" Derek asked, finally turning to look at Stiles again.

"What?" Stiles replied, glancing between him and the stuffed animals.

"Where's. Yours?" Derek repeated, gritting the words out like it pained him to say them again.

Stiles shrugged, "Uh, I don't have one?"

Derek glared at him suddenly, then turned and stared stomping away. He paused after only a few feet and quickly turned, scooping the wolves up in his arms, shooting Stiles another disapproving glare, and swiftly returning to the Camaro. "What!?" Stiles shouted at him, "No thank you?"

He watched Derek shove the stuffed animals through the open passenger window and then quickly swing around to sit in the driver's seat. Stiles thought for sure that Derek would drive off instantly, perhaps in a screech of tires to further show his disapproval or rage or whatever, but Derek simply turned and stared at the passenger seat for a moment. Stiles grinned again and tried to quickly wipe the expression off his face when Derek's gaze snapped up to his for a moment. Derek shook his shoulders out in the seat and quickly started the car and, yes, screeched out of the school parking lot where they had met.

Stiles waited until he was safely down the road to do a fist pump of victory.

* * *

So Stiles had totally tried, he wanted that on record. He had actually, really tried to find a wolf that matched him. But, it was incredibly difficult to pick out a stuffed animal that matched yourself, and that, Stiles had decided, was what he was going to tell Derek.

So yeah, that's why he was sneaking into the Hale house while Derek was out – he had carefully observed over the past years to discover Derek was a creature of strict regime and habits and always, always went for a run around the woods at this time in the afternoon.

Stiles crept up the stairs towards Derek's room, because that's what people did when they snuck in somewhere, even if they knew the person wasn't home. He reached the bedroom and decided, well, if he was here anyway, might as well wait for Derek in there and maybe, just maybe, snoop around while he was in there.

He didn't have to go far – spread out on half the bed were the wolves. Wolf-Lydia was up on the pillow, looking like she was perched on a throne, and Wolves-Scott/Allison were curled up right at the edge of the comforter. The terrible trio wolves were all bunched together just to the right of the pair. Stiles couldn't help the 'aw' that escaped his lips at the sight, especially when he noticed the bedding on the other half of the bed was mussed like Derek had slept there the night before – careful not to disturb the pack.

Stiles did a double take when he realized nestled between the pillow and Wolves-Scott/Allison was a small little human-shaped doll. Quickly stepping forward, sending a glance over his shoulder, Stiles approached the bed and gently tugged out the doll. It was, he thought, adorable. Clearly handmade – with slightly uneven limbs and frayed edges on the 'clothing' – it was a little man with actual-denim jeans and a little plaid shirt. Oh, Stiles realized, I think this is supposed to be me. It looked just as fragile as Stiles felt sometimes, like if he tugged at it wrong it might all fall apart. He gave it a test tug though, and found it was stronger than it looked. He wondered what that was supposed to mean about him.

A small smile crept over his face as he traced his fingers over the soft pinkish material that was used for his skin – it felt a bit like felt – and the expression turned into a grin when he realized his moles had been markered on. On top of the little head was a small bit of brown velvet, covering the head of the doll much like Stiles' buzzed hair did his.

Stiles was full-on grinning down at the little handmade doll when there was noise behind him, a choked out, "Stiles," and he turned to face Derek.

Derek's eyes flitted between his hands – the doll – and his face quickly and an uncomfortable expression, one that Stiles had never seen before but thought might be embarrassment, crept over Derek's face.

"Hey," Stiles said, giving Derek a small wave. He paused for a moment hand frozen in the air as silence filled the room and then reached down and waved the doll's hand too.

Derek shifted uncomfortably in the doorway and slowly took a step into the room. "So," Stiles said, drawing out the word as long as possible, "So, uh, if there's a me now – which nice by the way – uh, shouldn't there be a you?"

The man crept forward again, eyes firmly fixed on the floor and not on Stiles' hands or his face, and he shrugged a little. "I think so," Stiles continued, turning to survey the pack spread out on the bed. "There needs to be a Wolf-Derek to watch over all these trouble-makers, help out little Stiles here, because it'd be hard for a human to deal with all these wolves." He glanced over at Derek and noticed he was actually looking in Stiles' direction now.

Derek swallowed, and Stiles could even hear it as he watched his Adam's-apple bob up and down, and gave a small nod. With stiff movements, he moved over to a trunk that sat at the foot of the bed and opened it. He glanced at Stiles over the open lid and then reached in and drew out – oh, Stiles sucked in his breath, a worn-out stuffed wolf, larger than the ones on the bed, that had obviously been around for quite some time.

As Derek was placing it on the bed, right in the middle of the pack, Stiles asked carefully, "Yours?" He stared at the wolf – one with dark gray fur that was sitting on its haunches, head tilted slightly down so it seemed to actually be looking over the rest of the pack.

Clearing his throat loudly, Derek shook his head and then replied softly, "My…little sister's. It…it made it."

Stiles' throat tightened as he looked at the stuffed wolf, the thing that had made it when his sister didn't, and he touched Derek gently on the arm. "It's beautiful," he offered, trying to convey, 'I'm sorry' with the same words. Stiles then leaned forward slowly and placed the Stiles-doll in between the front paws of the wolf.

He held his breath as he glanced over at Derek and watched as a small smile grew on the man's face. Stiles smiled back at his look of contentment when their eyes met.

* * *

Thanks for reading; hope you enjoyed! Reviews always appreciated ;)


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